As being someone who has regularly worked with and volunteered for children organisations (Beaver Scouts, Young Amateur Swimming Clubs, etc) you would have thought I’d be over the moon with the Coalition’s plan to reduce checks to child workers. But what you’ll find is something rather mixed.

After completing countless CRB clearances for numerous organisations I do recognise the sheer scale of requirements needed, at times it really is just excessive. But, as much as I like the idea of removing so-called “red-tape” I’m equally aware of the present dangers this entails. Unlike buisnesses that complain about “red tape”, the importance of this “red tape” everyone should hold in a much higher importance given the potential dangers of child abuse.

It’s like when you go through security at an airport, yes it’s tedious, yes it takes forever and yes bits here and there are a tad unnecessary, but you feel a lot safer once you are in the air. The same is for CRB checks, yes bits are a bit unnecessary, but overall as the old saying says “It’s better to be safe than sorry.”.

Max